Pressed Steel Car Co., Inc.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 23, 1942

46 N.L.R.B. 262 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of PRESSED STEEL CAR COMPANY, INC. and INTERNATIONAL
UNION, UNITED AUTOMOBILE, AIRCRAFT AND AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT
WORKERS OF AMERICA , C. I. O.
Case No. B-4532.-Decided December 03, 1942
Jurisdiction : ordnance manufacturing industry
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question: re-
fusal to accord recognition without certification; existing contract providing
for representation of members only, held no bar to; election necessary
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : all production and maintenance
employees at one plant, not on a salaried basis, including horn ly paid sub-
foremen, but -excluding supervisory employees, foremen, office and clerical
employees , and guards.
Meyers and Meyers, by Mr. M. E. Baker, of Chicago, Ill., for the
U.A.W.
Thorp, Bostwick & Armstrong, by Mr. Charles M. Thorp, Jr., of
Pittsburgh, Pa., for the Company.
Mr. Frank Barnhart, of 1-IammoncI, Ind., for UCW-UMW.
Miss Muriel J. Levor, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
Upon petition duly filed by United Automobile, Aircraft and Agri-
cultural Implement Workers of America, C. I.. 0., herein, called the
U. A. W., alleging that a question affecting, commerce had arisen
concerning the representation of employees of Pressed Steel Car
Company, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,'herein called the Company,
the National Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hear-
ing upon due notice before Lester Asher, Trial Examiner. Said
hearing was held at'Chicago, Illinois, on November 13, 1942. The
Company, the U. A. W. and United Construction Workers, Division
of District 50, United Mine Workers of America, herein called the
UCW-UMW, appeared, participated, and were afforded full oppor-
tunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to
46 N. L. R B., No. 34.
262
PRESSED STEEL CAR COMPANY, INC. 263
introduce evidence bearing upon the issues. The Trial Examiner's
rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are
hereby affirmed. All parties filed briefs which the Board has con-
sidered.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following
FINDINGS OF' FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANY
Pressed Steel Car Company, Inc., a Pennsylvania corporation, has
its principal offices in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is authorized to
transact' business in the State of Illinois. The Company, is engaged
in the business of manufacturing and assembling railway passenger
cars, freight cars, mine cars and equipment, tanks, shell forgings, and
armor plate. The Company owns and operates a•plant in Hegewisch,
Illinois, and one in McNees Rocks, Pennsylvania. Only the Hege-
wisch plant is involved in this proceeding and it is devoted ex-
clusively to the manufacture of tanks and other war materials. During
1941 the Company purchased for use at its Hegewisch plant
raw materials of a value in excess of $1,000,000, of which approx-
imately 75 percent was purchased from sources outside the State of
Illinois. During the same period net sales of the Company at the
Hegewisch plant were in excess of $1,000,000, of which over 90 percent
represented the'value of products shipped to points outside the State
of Illinois.
The Company concedes that with respect to the operations of its
Hegewisch plant it is engaged in commerce within the meaning of the
National Labor Relations Act.
IT. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
International Union, United Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural
Implement Workers of America, is a labor organization affiliated with
the Congress of Industrial Organizations, admitting to membership
employees of the Company.
United Construction Workers, Division of District 50, United Mine
Workers of America, is a labor, organization admitting to membership
employees of the Company.
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION
The' Hegewisch plant had been idle for a few years prior to the
acquisition of a large war contract in 1940. Before production was
resumed, while 300 to 400 workers were engaged in rehabilitation, the
Company, on April 3, 1941, executed a contract recognizing, Local 237
264 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
of the United • Construction Workers Organizing Committee, herein
called UCWOC, as the representative of those employees'of the Com-
pany who were its members. A year later the UCWOC entered into
another contract with the Company, containing the same members
only clause, effective until March 1, 1943.,
In July 1942, Local 237, UCWOC, passed a resolution to change
its affiliation from the Congress of Industrial Organizations to Dis-
trict 50, United Mine Workers of America, and the Company was
notified. Another resolution to the same effect was carried on August
17, 1942,, at a meeting at which only 30 to 40 members were present.
On the same day, August 17, a supplemental agreement was executed
by the Company and UCW-UMW, which provided that all terms and
conditions of the agreement with Local 237, UCWOC, would be con-
sidered binding upon the, parties to the supplemental agreement.
On August 5, 1942, prior to the execution of the supplemental
agreement referred to above, Local 167 of the U. A. W. requested a
conference with the Company for the-purpose of collective bargaining.
On August 8, 1942, the Company advised the U. A. W. that it had
entered into a contract with Local 237, UCWOC, that it understood
that the name of this organization had been changed to UCW-UMW,
and that until March 1, 1943, it would not bargain with any other
organization.
' The UCW-UMW urges that its contract with the Company consti-
tutes a bar to a present determination of representatives. In view of
the fact that the contract recognizes the UCW-UMW as the repre-
sentative of its members only, we find that it does not constitute a bar?
A statement of the Acting Regional Director, made a part of the
record, indicates that the U. A. W. represents a substantial number of
employees in the unit hereinafter found appropriate.2
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of the employees of the Company, within the
meaning of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) ' and (7) of the Act.
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNIT
All the parties have agreed that the appropriate unit consists of all
production and maintenance employees not on a salaried basis, but
excluding office, clerical, and supervisory "employees. However, there
I See Matter,of Birmingham Tank Company, Division of The Ingalls Iron Works Com-
pany, Inc and International Association of Bridge, Structural and Ornamental Iron
Workers, Skopmen's Local #539, 25 N. L. R. B. 1306; Matter of Hewitt Rubber Corporation
and United Rubber Workers of America, Local Union 188. 31 N. L R. B 982.
2 The Acting Regional Director reported that the U. A. W. submitted 1,302 'designhtion
cards bearing apparently genuine signatures ; that a spot-check of these cards shows that
1,044 of the employees named thereon appear on the Company's pay roll of October 18,
1942 ; that this pay roll contains the names of 3,104 employees within the appropriate unit.
The U. A. W. submitted 97 additional cards to the Trial Examiner at the hearing of which
1 81 bore names on the said pay roll.
PRESSED STEEL CAR COMPANY, INC. 265
are diverse, claims in regard to the inclusion of the guards. These
guards, the Company contends, should be excluded because they have
been inducted into the Auxiliary Military Police. Both unions con-
tend that they should be included.' The plant guards are armed, have
access to all parts of the plant, and have been inducted into the Auxil-
iary Military Police. They constitute a specialized plant-protection
force. In accordance with our usual policy, we shall exclude the guards
from the unit.
Although the U. A. W. sought at the hearing to exclude hourly paid
subforeman, in its brief it agreed with the other parties that they
should, be included. These subforemen are paid on an hourly basis
and have the same duties and authority as the set-up men and leaders
whom all parties desire to include. They do not, have the authority to
hire or discharge. We shall, therefore, include hourly paid subfore-
men in the unit.
We find that all production and maintenance employees of the Com-
pany at the Hegewisch, Illinois, plant, not on a salaried basis, including
hourly- paid subforemen, but excluding supervisory employees, fore-
men, office and' clerical employees, and guards, constitute a unit appro-
priate for the purposes of collective bargaining within the meaning
of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
V. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
We shall direct that the question concerning representation which
has arisen be resolved by an election by secret ballot among the em-
ployees in the appropriate unit who were employed during the pay-roll
period immediately preceding the ' date of the Direction of Election
herein, subject to the limitations and additions set forth in the
Direction.
DIRECTION OF ELECTION
By virtue of and pursuant to tlie'power vested in the National Labor
Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Relations Act,
and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor Relations
Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to determine representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Pressed Steel Car
Company, Inc., Hegewisch, Illinois, an election by secret ballot shall
be conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days
from the date of this Direction, under' the direction and supervision
of the Regional Director for the Thirteenth Region, acting in this
matter as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject
8In its petition the U. A. WW asked the exclusion of the guards but changed its position
at the hearing . In its brief it asked for their inclusion.
266 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
to Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the unit found appropriate in Section IV above, who were
employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date
of this Direction, including employees who did not work during said
pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or temporarily
laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of the United
'States who present tliemselves in person at the polls, but excluding
any who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to determine
whether they desire to be represented by International Union, United
Automobile, Aircraft and Agricultural Implement Workers of Amer-
ica, C. I. 0., or by United Construction Workers, Division of District
50, United Mine Workers of America, for the purposes of collective
bargaining, or by neither.